


Cheerleader

by dallaswlnston



Category: The Outsiders - S. E. Hinton
Genre: Ficlet, Gay Johnny Cade, M/M, Pining, Temporarily Unrequited Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-01
Updated: 2019-03-01
Packaged: 2019-11-07 06:47:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17955599
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dallaswlnston/pseuds/dallaswlnston
Summary: The gang plays football, but Johnny's more content to watch.





	Cheerleader

The sun beats down in such intense rays that not even the cool summer breeze helps the suffocating warmth. Still, the neighborhood is flooded with people. Children play on lawns, peddling plastic tricycles or shooting each other with imaginary guns; couple’s sit under the shade of one of the few trees, soupy ice cream dripping onto their fingers; old folks sit on their porches in rocking chairs, chain smoking or simply watching the world pass them by.

The gang opts to play football in the grassy area next to vacant lot near their houses. They’ve split into two teams: The Curtis Brothers and The Rejects. The brothers  are Darry, built like a quarterback and twice as competitive, which makes up for the youngest brother, Pony, who’s small but squirrely, able to slip between bodies with ease. Lastly is Soda, who plays fair until you take your eyes off of him. The Rejects are the leftovers of the gang. Dally, who plays defense, all height and broad shoulders, able to plant his feet hard as tree trunks, making him impossible to knock over or tackle. Then there is Steve, fast and good at offense, and wouldn’t know how to play fair if he wanted to. Two-Bit is fittingly last, for he doesn’t play so much as tumble and tackle whenever the moment strikes him. While the The Curtis Brothers seem like shoe-ins, The Rejects cheat as much as possible, making the teams evenly matched.

Johnny Cade, the smallest of the gang, doesn’t play. He doesn’t have the muscle or stamina to play, but is happy to sit on the sidelines and cheer whenever a point is made, regardless of what team scored.

He’s laughing and whooping, but his eyes never leave one person. Dally. Hair a mess and knees covered in dirt, Dally is like something out of a movie. He wears nothing but a pair of old nylon gym shorts, and his skin is covered in a fine sheen of sweat that makes his skin seem to glisten. He’s grinning so wide his face seems to split in two and Johnny thinks he looks like a god, like a ancient Grecian athlete.

Johnny’s always been in love with Dally, but its moments like this where Johnny feels his feelings as suffocating as the heat. But Dally is normal, well, more normal that a queer, broken thing like Johnny, and far to beautiful for Johnny to ever even consider his secret desire a reality.

Still, that doesn’t stop him from imagining Dally rushing over and tackling Johnny and kissing him until they’re both unable to breathe. It makes Johny’s insides tingle, sets his skin on fire, but it's only a fantasy, and Johnny swallows it down like a gulp and tears his gaze away from Dally’s twinkling skin, his magnetic eyes, the contours of his chest that remind Johnny of marble statues even with the dozens of scars.

Suddenly the game has finished and Johnny’s too caught up in himself to catch who wins, but then he sees Dally run towards him and tackle him. He rips a handful of grass and rubs it in Johnny’s hair, making Johnny scrunch his face in protest. “Hear that, Johnnycake? The Rejects won!” Dally cheers, and his face is bright, elated, and Johnny can’t remember the last time he saw Dally look this way.

Johnny laughs and batts Dally away. “Y'all always win,” He says, gently teasing him. “It ain’t really somethin’ to celebrate.”

Dally pauses, giving Johnny an unreadable look and Johnny is certain Dally will kiss him, but instead Dally pushes himself to his feet and shrugs, confident. “I don’t like to brag,” He says, too cocky for his own good, and holds out his arm to help Johnny stand.

Johnny rolls his eyes before taking Dally’s hand, ignoring how it makes his heart beat like a caged animal in his chest. “Ya right, you love to brag.”

Dally grins, but it's softer than before. It's a kind of smile Johnny knows is reserved for him, one he knows not even Sylvia has seen. “You know me too well, Johnnycake,” He says, and Johnny knows then that he’ll never be rid of this crush. That as long as Dally keeps playing football, Johnny will sit and cheer him on.


End file.
